The new UN police chief in East Timor says one of her top priorities is
to provide training to the local police force to take over policing of the
young nation. UNPOL Commissioner Sandra Peisley is an Australian, who
formerly served with the Australian Federal Police.

Speakers: Commissioner Sandra Peisley, head of the UNPOL, the United
Nations police force in East Timor

PEISLEY: A full review of those disturbances was undertaken and a
number of lessons learnt were generated. Part of our approach regarding
those lessons learnt has been an issue of retraining and it has also been
an issue of identifying a new code of conduct for the Timor Leste. Police,
and also identification of a use of force policy that is widely known by
one and all in the police service.

LAM: Do you think that kind of local culture of authority; do you think
that would be difficult to change?

PEISLEY: That is a difficult question to answer. Obviously because it's
such a new nation and because the police service here is only three years
old, they are still learning, and no doubt they will be still learning and
building their own capacity over a number of years to come. But yes,
obviously there are always issues, whether they be cultural or otherwise
that it will need a particular focus, and the training that's now
undertaken by the Timor Leste Police has in fact been extended by three
months following our review of the incidents last year, and with a very
practical focus now during that training. So that rather than it simply be
a matter of theory and bookwork within the training academy, they now do a
lot of practical exercises and scenarios, which actually give them an
opportunity to physically undertake the sort of action that they would if
they were attending an incident, and that they can then receive feedback
at the time on how they undertook that particular action.

LAM: Do you think that by doing this that you are answering critics
charges that the UN should instead spend the money on sending experts into
East Timor to help build a local police force, rather than to send an
expensive international force or street cops if you like to East Timor?

PEISLEY: I think that's very much underselling the skills and abilities
of the United Nations police that are here. We have some highly skilled
officers and not simply in community policing, but skilled across a range
of policing functions, both administrative and operational. Obviously when
you're recruiting in the manner in which we do, we've got job profiles and
we have specific skills that we are looking for, particularly over the
next six to 11 months where the UNPOLs will in fact be undertaking a
technical adviser role, we'll actually be accompanying members of the
Timor Leste police when they do in fact attend at incidents in their
districts. And rather than the UNPOL members undertake the job themselves,
they will watch the new Timor Leste(?) police undertake the job and then
provide advice on what further actions they should take, or how they dealt
with a particular matter, or be there to give advice should it be
required.

LAM: How long is UNPOL to remain in East Timor?

PEISLEY: UNPOL will be here until the end of May next year 2004.

LAM: And that's just under a year away, do you think the local police
will be ready by then to take over the policing of their country?

PEISLEY: We're already part-way towards that goal, there are a number
of districts here in Timor Leste that have already been in fact formally
handed over from UNPOL to the Timor Leste police. And we have UNPOL in the
districts and working with the PNTL as advisors. So nine of the 13
districts have already been handed back to the police, and they are, it's
a learning curve, we do have to recognise that this police service has
only been up and running for three years.

LAM: The UN's investigating reports that Thai prostitutes have been
smuggled into East Timor. Will UNPOL be extra vigilant, not just about its
staff or personnel engaging sex workers, but also have to ensure that no
sex workers have been forcibly transported to East Timor?

PEISLEY: Absolutely, we've been focussing since early this year and not
just of late, since April actually of 2003, where UNPOL together with PNTL
have undertaken a number of jobs where we've been focussing on sex workers
and looking at whether there has been in fact any breach as far as human
rights are concerned or any trafficking issues. So we have been actively
involved in investigating and preventing the sexual exploitation of women
and of children of course.